Biamping with a tube and SS combo


I was watching a youtube video by Paul @ PS Audio in which he was discussing the differences between bi-wiring and bi-amping. An interesting point he made was that some folks like to use a bi-amping configuration where a tube amp is driving the tweeters, whereas SS is managing the woofers. I've read a lot about tube pre's working in conjunction with SS amps, but never really thought about this particular combination. Sounds intriguing. So inquiring minds (and mine as well) want to learn a bit more from those who might have travelled down this road ...

How would you compare the bi-amping scenario I described above with the more common tube pre + SS amp combo? If you have compared both, which one sounded better to you?

If one were to go down this path, what aspects one has to keep in mind? E.g. things like impedance, gain settings, etc,

If you have one source only, which one do you connect it to? And subsequently, how do you connect the tube and SS (same as the pre/amp combo?) ?

I would love to hear from folks who have actually tried it, and not just throw a bunch of measurement graphs at us. Also, let's not turn this into a bi-amping vs bi-wiring comparison or tutorial. Thank you.


128x128arafiq
Read your owners manual and see what your speakers support. To bi-amp, the mid/tweeter drivers (and their portion of the crossover) need to be electrically isolated from the woofer and its section of the crossover. You DON'T want the output of the two amps commingled. 

There are also some setups that need an active, electronic crossover that goes in between the preamp and the two amps. The amps then connect directly to their drivers without using a passive crossover. (This is only correct for a two way system. If you have a three-way, there will still need to be a passive crossover to separate the signal for the midrange drivers and tweeters. An option to this is to tri-amp, where you use three stereo amps.)

You'll also need to have some way to adjust the volume of the respective amps -- it is unlikely that both amps will have precisely the correct amount of gain for proper balance between the mid/tweeter and woofer. The polarity may need to be switched on one of the amps in order to have a correct transition between the upper & lower frequencies.  

This is just a basic primer. As you can see, there is a lot to consider.  

As for pairing a tube amp with a SS amp, that's fine assuming the power and sensitivity aspects are appropriate. It will then just become a matter of your taste as to whether it provides the sound quality you're looking for.
@arafiq
"...I described above with the more common tube pre + SS amp combo? If you have compared both, which one sounded better to you?"..


Having tried all scenarios mentioned above, I’ll mention results can vary quite a bit when you start intermixing different type, brand, and power amplifier outputs. Getting attenuation right without introducing other components can be tricky. There is something to be said about selecting components originally designed and voiced to work together.

In my case, I locked in on a specific tube preamp I really liked (starting baseline), and then tried different amplifiers (Tube and SS) over several years. Also bi-amped the tube amp(s) for top-end and solid state on the bottom end as you described. After I was done screwing around too long, went back to two mono tube amps (same, brand, type, power) to drive each speaker individually. I liked the tube preamp and class A/AB ss stereo amp combo 2nd best.

Kiinda like asking what vehicle to buy, and more info is needed to understand how you plan to use it. It really depends on what you are really trying to accomplish and what starting gear you are working with for your SS amp, and go from there. A lot of people do use tube preamps to change the sound of how a SS amp sounds. Once they get a taste of what good "tube" sounds like, curiosity sets in further about tube amps... :).  Next a series of questions develops about what integrated tube amp they should buy.  Rinse and repeat.  Good Luck.  
Depending on where the crossover point is, there can still be quite a bit of midrange info coming through woofer, which I prefer to hear thru tubes.  I'm doing vertical bi-amping with two tube amps, but am using tubes that are adept at tighter deeper bass for the woofers, and different tubes with better mids and highs for the top end.  Then I run a powered SS subwoofer from 40hz down.